Sunday, December 04, 2005

Author's note: the dupatta is a major women's accessory in India, a long scarf, roughly 1.5 metres long and 12-24" wide, that is meant to be draped across the chest for modesty. At first one chafes at the added heat and bulk of this garment, but during one's travels, it proves to come in handy with a thousand uses. Dupattas are best chosen in a dark colour to match all your outfits and not show dirt. After washing in your trusty bathroom bucket (remind me to explain the bucket system in a later post), a cotton dupatta dries in the Indian sun in a matter of minutes. How did I ever travel without one? Let me count the ways....

1. Wiping your dripping hands after the restaurant "hand wash" (there is never a towel)

My chunni is a sweat-wipe, a pillow if I need one, an eco-friendly kleenex, a sun-shade, a fly-swat, a purse, a napkin, a towel, a veil, a curtain giving me private space, a flirtation prop, a fashion statement, a compress, a bandage --- on and on. Shauna

Hehe I must admit I used quite a lot of those use, I live in India and I even muse my old dupattas as curtains to reduce the shine effect on my TV LOL. I also used it as a blind fold in trains, because there is always one idiot that will leave the light on and prevent anybody else in the vincinity from sleeping more or less well. It also comes very handy as a duster before sitting in a flithy chair or bench, just have to remember not to use the same end to wipe clean hands after a handwash though, because oftent he place that have no towels in th e washroom, have filty seats and tables to wipe before the meal.

Hundi Daan

Spiritual Investigative Reporter

Sirensongs moved to India in 2002 to complete her six years' study of the ancient temple dance, Bharatanatyam. Apprenticing with a revered master in Madras, she learned a great deal; however, most of it was not about dance.
Disillusionment and childhood memories of "Tintin In Tibet" have led her to adventures as a spiritual investigative reporter throughout India, Nepal and Sri Lanka; as documented on this blogsite, her Flickr photo portfolio and various newsmedia (see sidebar).
She holds a certificate in Spoken Sanskrit from Rashtriya Samskrta Samsthan (deemed university, New Delhi) and is a lifetime member of ABHAI (Assoc. of Bharatanatyam Artists of India). Sirensongs is inordinately proud of her ability to read street signs and argue (successfully) with taxi drivers in Malayalam, Hindi, French and Nepali languages.
Her Tibetan, however, is still a total disgrace. She's working on it.
Quote: "Why do people go to India to find themselves? India is where you go to LOSE yourself."

legal ramifications

Unless otherwise noted, every word and photograph on this website, including the phrases "Spiritual Investigative Reporter" and "Indologist at Large," is original and copyright from 2005 into perpetuity by Sirensongs (yes, I have a real name I use for legal purposes). It is not public domain. It is not there for the borrowing. If you would like to use it, write and ask nicely. Karma is a bitch. Thank you.